It has been reported that the Ukranian authorities have stopped a huge cyberattack on their telecommunications systems and blame Russia for the attack.

Sam Curry, chief security officer at Cybereason, said: "Russia is at a geopolitical crossroads between empire and obsolescence. One future has Russia being a minor, divided, ageing nation that no longer innovates or is an economic powerhouse. Another has it re-exerting regional influence and creating a new balance of power.

"It’s this later path that has led to election tampering, alleged assassinations, statism and adventurism. Without a change in leadership, it’s naive to expect that the Russian Bear will quiesce and retire to its cave, let alone find a third path fostering innovation, energising a people and engaging in a new peace with the West, the East and the Middle East.

"The Ukraine is just far enough out of reach for Western powers, with a carefully nurtured Russian minority and from the former buffer states that the playbook is obvious. Ukraine and any other adjacent nation in a similar position needs to be leery of attacks that soften, test, probe and seek to destabilise, because destabilisation is a heartbeat away from so-called police actions, nation building and adventurism. The world needs to pay attention to the Ukraine; it’s not a side show, but is main stage in Eastern Europe for the balance of world powers. "